Telephone triage and seizure management for community-based ID/DD: A research synthesis

Abstract

Nurse and physician clinicians often guide seizure care for individuals with intellectual and developmental disability (ID/DD) through telephone triage. This article evaluated the evidence for epilepsy management tools with a focus on the telephone triage tool. Studies were included in the systematic review, data was extracted, followed by meta-aggregated findings. A rigorous methodological protocol was used as described by The Cochrane Collaboration. All quantitative or descriptive studies that included epilepsy management tools or protocols for persons with ID/DD living in a community-based setting were considered. No tools specific to ID/DD seizure management via telephone triage were discovered. Study results reveal a possible gap in clinical care. Research findings did support the use of telephone triage tools and epilepsy protocols for clinicians. These findings may improve seizure management by focusing ID/DD clinicians on the advantages of using such tools. Findings may also illuminate the need for seizure management tools specific to the ID/DD population.